the food in the 1970's was terrible. to those graduating today, i assure you it was worse then. we were served in green trays with five compartments in them the size of tb dinners, no seconds. by 9:00 every evening, i was hungry again and had to go to church's chicken. by our senior year, dr. glasser was glad to see the class of 1979 leave his school, but not without one more fight. dr. laster had invited a civil rights leader of national stature to be our commencement beaker. we told him his choice was not acceptable. to us, the speaker was too mainstream, and i now realize i am out on a limb with john. so in 1979, our baccalaureate was louis farrakhan, and our commencement speaker was the

leader of the revolutionary movement in zimbabwe. me, the four years was transformational. i told you my freshman year gpa was 1.8. by sophomore year, something had awakened within me. i found who i was here. i became comfortable in my own skin and proud of my own skin color. in the fall some master of my sophomore year, sitting in room 217 of what was then thurman hall, now llc, and realizing there was nothing left for me to do but study. i wanted to go to law school and be prepared to answer a call to service. my gpa went from 1.8 23 point zero. spring semester sophomore year, 3.5. year fourter, junior point zero. spring semester junior year, 4.0.

year, fourer senior point zero. spring semester senior year, 4.0. i left morehouse on fire and went to columbia law school and received a job offer from almost every wall street firm i interviewed with. i am proud of my private sector achievements. i am proud to have been the first african-american partner one of the most profitable law firms in the united states. i am proud to be a fellow in the prestigious american college of trial lawyers. but what i learned on this that something even more is expected of a morehouse man. this is why on november 22, 2006, when another black man with an unusual first name called me to ask for my support for his longshot presidential campaign, i knew how to answer that call. with the education i received here, and education that cannot be obtained anywhere in the

ivy leagues, i knew i was being asked to participate in history. dr. mayes taught all of us we only have a moment, but there is a paternity in it. so i recognized on november 22 eternity in it.r so i recognized that i had a momentous choice. decisive, important, vital, big, crucial, historic, earth shattering, all the things expected of a morehouse man. this is why on november 22, 2000 six, despite the long odds associated with his candidacy, i told senator obama, barack, if you run, i am with you. so i stand before you as a , who by and d student virtue of the education and

inspiration i received at this place is today a member of president barack obama's cabinet , the head of a government agency of 240,000 people, and the guardian of this nation's homeland security. [applause] today, you are hereby crowned a ce, anointedk prin with the title morehouse man, propelled by the pride of your family, entrusted with the legacy of the great morehouse men who precede you and saddled with a load of expectations. being a morehouse man means more than acquiring a good job am a good manners, and a good suit. ,hile others fear the darkness you must light the candle. wallow in bigotry,

intolerance or homophobia, you must provide enlightenment. when others are content to deliver courage by proxy, you must step to the front of the line. a our society continues to need the power of your leadership and the power of your example. eachthe last four years, time you sang dear old morehouse, you pledge dear life to this institution and its ideals and all things that you to lead ar it is nonviolent social movement, help president,ecome served in his cabinet, serving as military, preach the word of god, teach for america, teach sunday school, serve as an addiction advisor, serve as your brothers keeper, one more thing. you leave morehouse today, but you do not leave it behind.

today is your last day morehouse, but it is your first day you can start to give back. the future of the school depends on its alumni. i know i speak for every alumnus at this event when i say we look forward to seeing your names next to ours on the list of alumni donors. large or small, whatever you are .apable of doing to those who become morehouse man, much is required. thank you. [applause] [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2014]

>> the chair of the federal reserve, janet yellen, paid tribute to her predecessor, ben bernanke, during her commencement address at new york university. she talked about his courageous actions during the 2000 eight financial crisis. she is the first woman to lead the fed and its 100 year history. she was awarded an honorary doctorate from nyu prior to her remarks. this is about 10 minutes. thank you, president sexton. on behalf of the honorees, let me express my thanks to nyu. and congratulations from all of us to you, the class of 2014, and to your families, especially your parents. this is a special day to

celebrate your achievements and to look forward to your lives ahead. your nyu education has not only provided you with a foundation of knowledge; it has also, i hope, instilled in you a love of knowledge and an enduring curiosity. life will continue to be a journey of discovery if you tend the fires of curiosity that burn brightly in all of us. such curiosity led eric kandel, here at nyu, to his lifetime goal, to discover the chemical and cellular basis of human memory.

a few years after his graduation, he was doing research on cats. but he had the idea of focusing on an animal with a simpler, more fundamental brain: the california sea slug. his colleagues all but ridiculed him for the idea. they "knew" that the study of the lowly sea slug was irrelevant for understanding human memory. kandel's surgically-skilled collaborator deserted him. to get up to speed on sea slugs, he had to go abroad to study.

but kandel persisted and, in 2000, his curiosity won him the nobel prize. it was, as you must have guessed, for deciphering the chemistry of memory in humans, as revealed by his research on sea slugs. kandel's life, i believe, demonstrates how a persistent curiosity can help us reach ambitious goals, even with great roadblocks in the way. a second tool for lifelong intellectual growth is a willingness to listen carefully to others. these days, technology allows us access to a great breadth of perspectives, but it also allows us to limit what voices we hear

to the narrow range we find most agreeable. listening to others, especially those with whom we disagree, tests our own ideas and beliefs. it forces us to recognize, with humility, that we don't have a monopoly on the truth. yankee stadium is a natural venue for another lesson: you won't succeed all the time. even ruth, gehrig and dimaggio failed most of time when they stepped to the plate. finding the right path in life, more often than not, involves some missteps. my federal reserve colleagues and i experienced this as we

struggled to address a financial and economic crisis that threatened the global economy. we brainstormed and designed a host of programs to unclog the plumbing of the financial system and to keep credit flowing. not everything worked but we kept at it, and we remained focused on the task at hand. i learned the lesson during this period that one's response to the inevitable setbacks matters as much as the balance of victories and defeats. there is an unfortunate myth that success is mainly determined by something called "ability." but research indicates that our best measures of these qualities are unreliable predictors of performance in academics or employment.

psychologist angela lee duckworth says that what really matters is a quality she calls "grit" -- an abiding commitment to work hard toward long-range goals and to persevere through the setbacks that come along the way. one aspect of grit that i think is particularly important is the willingness to take a stand when circumstances demand it. such circumstances may not be all that frequent, but in every life, there will be crucial moments when having the courage to stand up for what you believe will be immensely important.

my predecessor at the fed, chairman ben bernanke, demonstrated such courage, especially in his response to the threat of the financial crisis. to stabilize the financial system and restore economic growth, he took courageous actions that were unprecedented in ambition and scope. he faced relentless criticism, personal threats, and the certainty that history would judge him harshly if he was wrong. but he stood up for what he believed was right and necessary. ben bernanke's intelligence and knowledge served him well as chairman. but his grit and willingness to take a stand were just as important.

i hope you never are confronted by challenges this great, but you too will face moments in life when standing up for what you believe can make all the difference. having dwelt for a moment on failure and grit, let me turn to the deeper meaning that underpins grit and can carry us beyond failure. the hard work of building a life that makes a difference is much easier to sustain when you are passionate about what you pursue. when i first came to the federal reserve 37 years ago, i was struck by the passion of my colleagues for the mission of the fed. and these many years later, each day at work, i see the importance of that passion to carrying out the fed's duties